Gas burner safety device



April 1950 B. H. TRAIVIS I 2,503,927

GAS BURNER SAFETY DEVICE Filed Oct. 9, 194a INVENTOR BFIR LETT l-LTRHVIS tZ W/fM/i ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 11, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;-

GAS BURNER SAFETY DEVICE Bartlett H. Travis, Garden City, N. Application October 9, 1948, Serial No. 53,660 2 Claims. (o1. 158-1171) This invention relates to safety devices for gas burners.

Among the objects of the present invention it is aimed to provide a safety device for a gas burner, and more particularly for the gas burner of a kitchen range, which will supplement the conventional gas valve, not only to prevent the escape of gas should the conventional pilot be extinguished, but which will also immediately shut off the gas supply to the burner immediately that the burner flame has become extinguished. By this means, should the burner flame become extinguished, either through a blast of air, or through a momentary interruption in the gas supply due to a defective supply, the final supply valve will be shut ofi and efiectively shut off, immediately that the flame has become extinguished. In turn, if the pilot light should have become extinguished, the opening of the main or conventional gas valve will not allow the main charge of gas to escape into the room since the final gas supply valve will not be opened if the pilot light has been extinguished.

These and other features, capabilities and advantages of the invention will appear from the,

subjoined detail description of one specific embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a fragmental plan view showing one burner of a conventional gas burning range with a pilot light unit in position to serve at least three additional burners, not shown.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation enlarged of the safety device for one burner.

In the embodiment shown, the conduit I is typical of the conventional main header connected to the gas supply. This header I has connected thereto in the present instance a small pipe, or conduit 2, which extends from the-header I to the pilot light unit 3, the dash and dot lines extending from the unit 3 schematically showing the direction of the flames from the unit 3' to four burners.

The conduit 2 is also equipped with the conventional spring pressed control button 4 which when pressed will enable a larger supply of gas to pass from the header I to the unit 3 and permit the flames there to increase in intensity and size.

The header I is also provided in the present instance with four connecting conduits 5, 6, I and 8, each of which is provided with a main valve 9 for controlling the supply of gas from the header I through the connecting conduits 5, B, I and 8. The valves 9, and their association with the connecting conduits 5, 6, 'I and 8 may also be conventional as shown.

In the present instance, to avoid duplication and thereby to simplify the description, the burner for the connecting conduit 8 al ne is shown,

2 to wit, the burner I0 and the safety device illustrated in Fig. 2 shown connected to the conduit 8 of this burner. In actual practice, however, there may be a separate safety device for each connecting conduit 5, 6, I and 8. i

The burner I0 is connected by the elbow II to the portion I2 of the connecting conduit 8, which portion I2 is in turn connected to the gate valve casing I3 interposed between the portion I2 and the portion I 4 of the connecting'conduit 8. The gate valve casing I3 in turn has journaled therein, the shaft I5 having mounted there on and within the casing I3 the gate valve I6, with a portion of the shaft extending from the casing I3, and having fixed thereon the link H, which is pivotally connected at I8 to the link I9, which in turn is pivotally connected to the arm 20 of the lever 21 fulcrumed at 22 to the stud 23 extendingfrom the upright I23 of the bracket 24, having the bimetal strip 25 extending up;- wardly with its free end normally in engagement with the lower flat face 26 of the arm 21 of the lever 2| The link I! is connected by the spring 28 to the upright I23 of the bracket 24. I The bimetal strip 25 at normal room temperature will assume the bent conformation shown in full lines at 29 in Fig. 2 where the spring 28 will press the link I'I into engagement with the stop arm I'II where it will actuate the link l9 inturn to actuate the lever 2| into the full line position shown in Fig. 2. When,how ever, the bimetal strip 25 is heated, as for instance, by the flame of a gas burner, or the flame of a pilot light,-.it will deflect substantially into the'dotted line position 30 shown in-Fig. 2 when its'free end-will raise the arm 21 of the lever 2| into the dash and dot line position shown to actuate the-link I! and thereby the gate valve I6 into open posi- The bimetal strip 25, 'see'l ig. 1', is disposed in the path of theflame 3| of the pilot' light unit 3 and also adjacent the flame of the "burner'i ll. Consequently, if the valve "9 'of the connecting conduit 8 is turned into open position-"and thereupon the button 4 pressed inwardly to stimulate the flames of the pilot light unit 3', including the flame 3| of the pilot lightunit 3, the bimetal strip 25 will first be heated-to actuate the arm 21 of the lever 2|, in turn to actuate the gate valve .I6' whereupon the gas will be free topass to the burner I0 and issue forth into the path of the flame 3| to be ignited thereby. Should the flame of the pilot light unit 3 have 'been'previously extinguished accidentally as an instance, then although the valve 9 of the connecting unit 8 has been opened and the button 4 has been depressed, the burner I0 will not become ignited. The safety unit in this instance'will thusprev'e'nt the undue escape of gas so freely resulting when the user neglects to turn off the main valve '9 of the connecting conduit 8 when the pilot light is extinguished, thereby to enable the bimetal strip 25 to cool ofi, resume its initial or normal position, and in turn actuate the lever 21 in turn again to close the gate valve 5. In other words, the main valve 9 of the connecting conduit 8 may remain open and yet no gas issue from the burner l after the pilot light button 4 has been released, in turn to enable the strip 25 to cool off, resume its initial or normal position, in turn to actuate the lever 2! in turn again to close the auxiliary or gate valve Hi.

In turn, if the pilot light unit 3 is in working order and the flame 3l issuing therefrom heats the bimetal strip 25 in turn to actuate the gate valve 1'6, the flame at burner l0 will become iginteriand remain so ignited until the valve 9 orthe connecting unit '8 has again been actuated to :oflf the gas supply through the connecting conduit 8 to the burner 10. After the button I has been released and the burner J 0 ignited, the heat generated by the flame of the burner to through conduction and convection will .be some to mamtain the bimetal strip 2'5 deflected where it will in turn maintain the valve H5 in open position. In turn, when the flame of the burner is extinguished, and the flame 31 of the pilot light not stimulated to heat the strip the housing "32 of the burner 10 will quickly cool o'if, the atmosphere around the burner will of course also in turn cool off so that the temperature by convection will be reduced in turn to cool the bimetal strip '25 and return it to its normal position Where it will again actuate the :le'verz l to-close the gatevalve It. Here, also, it through an unexpected gust of wind or other unintended cause, the flame of the burner has been extinguished, the gas will only continue to issue from the burner 1H until the bimetal strip 25 has cooled :sufiiciently again to resume the run line position 29 shown in Fig. 2 to enable the spring '28 to actuate the lever 21 and the links 19 and T8 in turnto actuate the gate valve i6 into closed position. Obviously, "each of the other connecting conduits 5, 6, and 7 may be equipped not only with burners such as the burner to, but also with safety devices such as the mechanism illustrated for actuating the valve It without departing from the general spirit :of the invention. In-such case one and the same pilot llghtunit {according to convention, may serve an four burners.

' {It isobvious that various changes and modifications may be made to the details of construction without departing from the generali spirit of the invention, as set. forth. in the appended claims, As-an instance, although the thermostat shown is a 'bimetal thermostat, obviously any other device that responds to the heat of the burner flame or the pilot light flame could be operatively connected to actuate the gate valve IS without departing from the general spirit of the invention. Similarly, although a. gate valve lends itself readily for operative connection with a bimetal thermostat, any other type of gas pipe control could be substituted without materially affecting the result here sought to be achieved.

on the other hand, although the safety device here shown is operatively connected to respond not only to the flame of the burner but also to the flame of the pilot light, the safety objective could at least in part be realized ii the device wereoperatively connected merely to respond to the flame of the burner without being associated with a pilot light in which case the gas supply would be effectively shut off when the burner flame was accidentally extinguished. In turn, the safety objective could also in part be realized if the device merely responded to the pilot light unit without being associated with the burner flame in which case, the auxiliary valve would not be opened upon actuation of the pilot light button when the pilot light flame had been extinguished.

I claim:

1. In a safety device for a gas burner connected to a gas supply conduit having a conventional gas valve and a pilot light unit operatively connected to the gas supply conduit, the combination of an auxiliary valve operatively connected to the gas supply conduit and disposed between said burner and said main valve normally to shut ofi the gas supply to said burner, and a thermostat operatively connected to, and controlling, said auxiliary valve, said thermostat being disposed adjacent to, and between, said burner and said pilot light unit normally in neutral position and actuatable initially to respond to the heat of said pilot light when stimulated to open said auxiliary valve and thereupon to respond to the heat of said burner to maintain open sa-id auxiliary valve while said burner is ignited and in turn to respond to the lack of heat when said burner is extinguished and said pilot light is either out or in normal decreased standby pilotingcondi-tion to actuate said auxiliary valve to shut ed the gas supply through said gas supply conduit.

2. In a safety device for a gas burner connected to a gas supply conduit having a conventional gas valve and a pilot light unit operatively connected to the gas supply conduit, the combination of an auxiliary valve operatively connected to the gas supply conduit and disposed between said burner and said main valve 'normally to shut off the gas supply to said burner, a bimetal thermostat, and a spring pressed linkage operatively connecting said thermostat to, and controlling, the operation of said auxiliary valve, said thermostat being disposed adjacent to, and between said burner and said pilot light unit normally in neutral position and actuatab'le initially to respond to the heat of said pilot light unit when actuated and stimulated in turn to open said auxiliary valve and thereupon to respond to the heat of said burner to maintain .open said auxiliary valve while said burner is ignited and in turn to respond to the lack of heat when said burner is extinguished and said pilot light is released to resume its normal standby condition thereby to enable said auxiliary valve to shutoff the gas supply through said gas supply conduit.

BARTLETT H. TRAVIS.

REFERENCES CITED 'The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,824,239 Shadrick Sept. 22, 1931 1,943,075 Horton Jan. 9, 1934 1,971,882 Tuck Aug. 28, 1934 1,974,321 Toelle Sept. 18, 1934 2,049,960 Jones et a1 Aug. 4, 1936 2,236,673 Cole Apr. 1, 1941 

